The author is a Forbes contributor. The opinions expressed are those of the writer.

Loading ...

Loading ...

This story appears in the {{article.article.magazine.pretty_date}} issue of {{article.article.magazine.pubName}}. Subscribe

While on a recent business trip in Phoenix I came across an industry conference where retailers and suppliers were connecting to establish and strengthen business relationships. I was able to meet with the leadership team of the association that organized the conference. After spontaneously touring the event and talking with some of the participants, one thing stood out: this association’s main goal is to help its members grow their businesses. Can your association do that? Maybe it should.

GMDC (Global Market Development Center) is a retail trade association that’s been around for 45 years. It has evolved an interesting method for getting suppliers, wholesalers and retailers together through the business equivalent of ‘speed dating’ wherein a supplier has a finite amount of time to pitch products to the wholesaler or retailer of choice. When the time is up, it’s on to the next preselected potential buyer. Buyers also have a say about who will pitch to them.

Patrick Spear, GMDC President and CEO, is fairly clear about his organization’s mission. “As a non-profit we’re only as good as the value we create for our members. We constantly look for ways to help them grow.” This association is based in Colorado Springs, not Washington DC, and they don’t spend time or resources lobbying for the industry. But they do play an indispensable role in the General Merchandise and Health Beauty Wellness spaces; a role spanning 125,000 retail locations and more than $500B in annual revenue. Spear would say, however, that their most important statistic is the 12,000 buyer/seller meetings they facilitate at each GMDC conference.

Curious about the members’ perspectives and what benefits they were looking for, I asked to speak with some of the companies that attend these conferences.

Scott Young, Hallmark VP Strategic Customer and Trade Relationships, reports that every time he and his team attend a conference, Hallmark ends up with more and stronger relationships in the industry. “And,” says Young, “we end up with more shelf space for our product.”

Bob Richardson is Director of Sales and Customer Development at Clorox/Burts Bee’s, and his job is to be the face of his company to the twelve associations in which Clorox/Burts Bee’s is a member. According to Richardson, “It’s important to the industry that buyers and sellers have ample opportunities to get together and make commerce happen. GMDC also provides thought leadership, education and collaboration.”

ShurTech Brands, makers of a duct tape product known as Duck Tape (ingeniously branded, in my opinion), is always looking for ways to increase distribution. Peter Fahrenkopf, VP Sales, Household, Stationery and Canada, uses the GMDC conferences to help reach his sales goals. “I can’t get around to everyone I’d like to see. These conferences get me face-to-face with all the right people.”

Business people, especially those in sales, know the value of expanding your network. The more people you are connected to, the more likely you are to get yourself in front of those who can help you grow your business. An industry association can perform any number of functions, but few are more important than building a network of buyers and sellers. So, choose your association wisely.